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A new link between diminished input from dopamine-firing cells deep inside the brain and the ability to form new memories could be crucial in detecting the earliest signs of Alzheimer’s disease.

Scientists from the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) Sheffield Biomedical Research Centre at the University of Sheffield have discovered a loss of cells that use dopamine – a neurotransmitter that has a number of functions including regulating movement and emotional responses – may cause the part of the brain responsible for forming new memories to function less effectively.

The findings could revolutionise screening for the early signs of Alzheimer’s disease – which affects more than 520,000 people in the UK – changing the way brain scans are acquired and interpreted as well as using different memory tests.

Lead author of the study, Professor Annalena Venneri, from the Sheffield Institute for Translational Neuroscience (SITraN) at the University of Sheffield, said: “Our findings suggest that if a small area of brain cells, called the ventral tegmental area, does not produce the right amount of dopamine for the hippocampus, a small organ located within the brain’s temporal lobe, it will not work efficiently.

“The hippocampus is associated with forming new memories, therefore these findings are crucial to the early detection of Alzheimer’s disease. The results point at a change which happens very early on, which might trigger Alzheimer’s disease.

The results showed a key link between the size and function of the ventral tegmental area, the size of the hippocampus and the ability to learn new material.

“More studies are necessary, but these findings could potentially lead to a new way of screening the elderly population for early signs of Alzheimer’s disease, changing the way brain scans are acquired and interpreted and using different memory tests,” said Professor Venneri who is also an Honorary Consultant at Sheffield Teaching Hospital NHS Foundation Trust.

“Another possible benefit is that it might lead to a different treatment option with the potential to change or halt the course of the disease very early, before major symptoms manifest.

“We now want to establish how early alterations in the ventral tegmental area can be seen and also test whether these alterations can be counteracted with treatments already available.”

The results of the study are published today (27 March 2018) in the Journal of Alzheimer’s Disease.

This study has been completed at the NIHR Biomedical Research Centre (BRC) in Sheffield which is dedicated to translational neuroscience for chronic neurological disorders. The Centre was launched in April 2017.

The NIHR Sheffield Biomedical Research Centre is a research partnership between the University of Sheffield and Sheffield Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, dedicated to improving the treatment and care of people living with chronic neurological disorders.

On the 25th of March, a memorandum of understanding between the University of Sheffield UK, Dhaka Shishu Hospital and Barisal Biotechnology UK Ltd was signed to cooperate to improve health in Bangladesh by developing training opportunities for scientific and clinical staff and programs in teaching, research and clinical care provision.

Barisal Biotech is a life sciences company with a focus on transferring UK healthcare, science knowhow, products, and knowledge based services into developing countries and worldwide, whose current focus is on Bangladesh.

This collaboration with Dhaka Shishu Hospital is aligned with the Centre for Genomic Medicine in Dhaka, which is part of the Bangladesh Diabetic Association (BADAS) as part of a newborn screening programme. These new working links are aligned with the University of Sheffield’s ‘think global’ internationalization initiative to develop transformational change in healthcare through multidisciplinary and multicountry partnerships.

The Sheffield Biomedical Research Centre (BRC) is focused on the pull through of translational neuroscience discoveries in neurodegeneration, neuroinflammation and cerebrovascular disease into clinical studies and experimental medicine trials. This is a cross-faculty University of Sheffield and Sheffield Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust collaboration, the first of it's kind in Sheffield and one of 20 NIHR BRCs around the UK. The Sheffield BRC is built in large part on the world-leading work of SITraN and offers new opportunities to progress the work done here along the tranlsational pipeline.

HackMed is a medical hackathon aimed at developing creative solutions to solve problems within medicine and healthcare. It is a student-run event for individuals from various backgrounds interested in the crossroads of life sciences and technology.

Throughout the weekend, hackers at HackMed will have a unique opportunity to learn from each other, build awesome projects together, and share them with other hackers. This will allow a multi-disciplinary mesh of people working on developing solutions to pressing problems within healthcare and medicine.